


Midpoint

by PartridgeOnAPearTree



Series: Transversal [30]
Category: Dangan Ronpa, Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-23
Updated: 2016-12-23
Packaged: 2018-09-11 10:30:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8976100
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PartridgeOnAPearTree/pseuds/PartridgeOnAPearTree
Summary: "Does this mean you do want to be friends?"





	

**Author's Note:**

> Project Hope Log#4: http://partridgeonapeartree.tumblr.com/private/154853626092/tumblr_oinbryBCPN1s8t9gp
> 
> It's December 24th where I am! Happy birthday, Junko! <3

**Sender:** Ikusaba Mukuro

 **Message:** Komaeda Nagito just left the restaurant. He doesn’t seem like he will return to the dorms.

 

Just a few seconds after Naegi received that message, his phone vibrates again.

 

 **Sender:** Komaeda Nagito

 **Message:** Good evening, Makoto-kun! I bought a box of assorted mochi for you. The restaurant was about to close, so I thought I should just walk around since I still don’t want to go back to the dorms ;w; I’ll be waiting for you!

 

 **Recipient:** Ikusaba Mukuro

 **Message:** Thank you so much, Ikusaba-san :) Can you make sure he’d stay where he is?

 

 **Recipient:** Komaeda Nagito

 **Message:** Hi, Nagito-kun. I'm so sorry I took so long. :( Are you still near the shop? We’re actually finished now, so I can come meet you already. Can you stay somewhere near if it’s okay? Maybe just outside the restaurant? I'm going there shortly.

 

 **Sender:** Ikusaba Mukuro

 **Message:** Understood.

 

 **Sender:** Komaeda Nagito

 **Message:** Alright, I will :) Was the person you met tonight nice?

 

 **Recipient:** Komaeda Nagito

 **Message:** Well, I think we were pretty similar in some aspects. I certainly hope we get along :)

 

“Wow, wow, do my eyes deceive me or did you really ask my ugly sister to watch over your ugly boyfriend?” Enoshima’s eyes widen rather exaggeratedly as she peers over Naegi’s shoulder. “So despair-inducingly disgusting!”

 

“I think neither Nagito-kun nor Ikusaba-san is ugly, you know.” Naegi chuckles as he pockets his phone. “What do you think, Matsuda-kun?”

 

Matsuda furrows his eyebrows upon being addressed. Naegi and Matsuda don’t really talk much even in situations where they're together. Now that he thinks about it too, Naegi doesn’t think he has already been in a setting where he had to be alone with Matsuda. There's always Enoshima who keeps the conversation going, and the two of them will just utter grunts of agreement here and there.

 

He thinks it’s because Matsuda doesn’t really like him. Naegi was never really given the chance to bond with him just the two of them, and he's sure that if it weren’t for Enoshima, Matsuda wouldn’t even be helping them out with any of this.

 

“Yeah.” Matsuda noncommittally agrees. “Guess so.”

 

Naegi wonders if Matsuda even heard what he said or he just came up with a reaction in random. Enoshima loudly groans anyway, disappointment and disapproval evident in her mere tone. “Such bad, bad taste! So bad I think even my puke got disgusted and refused to come out! Man, I guess people really have the weirdest kinks! Some fan bases get off to freckled girls with flat boobs while some get off to pasty lanky boys!”

 

Matsuda looked like he wanted to say something, but he seems to have decided against it at the final moment, settling for closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. He looks so lethargic and just done with everything. Naegi doesn’t blame him since aside from Ikusaba, he's probably the one who has had the most exposure to Enoshima.

 

And if Naegi were to be asked, Enoshima’s presence really gets tiring.

 

Quite taxing to the patience too, and he isn’t exactly very patient to begin with.

 

“That’s a false dichotomy, don’t you think, Enoshima-san?” So Naegi replies because probably the only thing more uncomfortable than this setting is if Enoshima just continues and continues to speak without being at least interrupted here and there by someone else. “You implied that because we don’t think they're ugly, we automatically—as you put it—‘get off’ to them.”

 

“Blah, blah, whatever, Naegi-kun! Anyway,” She turns to Matsuda. “It might be super late at night, but let’s have a date right now, Matsuda-kun!”

 

Naegi wonders if Enoshima already forgot the evident splashes of blood on her blouse, or she really just doesn’t care.

 

Matsuda just nods as he walks towards the space beside Enoshima. His face was blank, but Naegi could tell that he must be really fond of her. Naegi wonders exactly what Matsuda saw in Enoshima to like her this much. No matter how attractive she is, surely, looks won’t be enough, right?

 

Not like Naegi should concern himself with matters like this.

 

So he just smiles and nods as well at the both of them. “Alright, you two have fun tonight, Enoshima-san, Matsuda-kun. Thank you so much for your help. I believe we’ll be capable of doing much more impressive things together in the future.”

 

“Gyahahaha, sounds like a fucking promise!” Enoshima grins, waving the bloodied knife like she did earlier as both she and Matsuda start to turn around. “G’night! Don’t fuck too hard!”

 

Naegi ignores Enoshima’s last statement as he, too, turns around to leave.

 

\--

 

Naegi likes the nighttime. There's something about the quiet and dark atmosphere that relaxes him, and the occasional noises of the faraway vehicles don’t even annoy him when they disrupt the calmness. He quite likes the muted and distant sounds of them because those noisy things up close were reduced to nothing but muffled vibrations from this distance.

 

“Ah, Makoto-kun, you're here.” Komaeda immediately flashes him a wide smile, and just like he said, there was a box in one of his hands. “Did you have fun earlier? Would you still like to go somewhere tonight or are you tired already?”

 

“Hello, Nagito-kun. I'm so sorry I made you wait for so long.” Naegi leans forward and places a tentative kiss on Komaeda’s cheek. “I think I had fun, thank you for asking. Anyway, I feel really bad for letting you wait here on your own, so I’d let you decide… Would you still like to go somewhere tonight, Nagito-kun?”

 

“Haha, oh… You shouldn’t feel bad. I didn’t mind waiting for you.” Komaeda smiles. “But if you really wanted me to decide, then… Well, only if it’s okay, I’d like to hang out somewhere. Even if it’s already late, I still don’t feel like going back to the dorm…”

 

“That’s alright. Would you like the benches or somewhere else?”

 

“The benches would be fine. Thank you, Makoto-kun.”

 

“No problem.” Naegi smiles, squeezing Komaeda’s free hand as they start walking. “We can eat the mochi while we talk about anything you'd like to talk about.”

 

“Ah, right.” Komaeda squeezes his hand back. “There _is_ something I’d like to talk about…”

 

“Sure, what is it? You can tell me anything.” Naegi replies. “Or would you rather wait until the both of us are seated?”

 

“Yeah, maybe it would be good if we sit first.” Komaeda nods. “Makoto-kun, are you sure you're not tired? I mean, I understand if you actually want to rest already.”

 

“No, it’s okay. Nagito-kun has something he wants to talk about, so I won’t mind staying out later than the usual.”

 

“You're really too kind to me. I don’t deserve it.”

 

“Of course you do.” Naegi lightly bumps his side. “If there's a person I’d like to show my kindness the most, it’s you, Nagito-kun.”

 

Komaeda lets out a flattered chuckle as they reach one of the benches while Naegi found it amusing that this was the location he and Hinata used to frequent when they too had things to talk about.

 

Too bad that can never happen again.

 

Naegi resists the urge to let out a chuckle too himself.

 

They sit next to each other in nothing but companionable silence for a few minutes that Naegi briefly wondered if Komaeda forgot whatever it is he wanted to talk about. He wasn’t really interested as he must have left his genuine attention in the room Kamukura Izuru uses, but because of finally seeing Kamukura, he's actually in a good enough mood to be tolerant right now even more so than the usual.

 

“I'm not anything special.” Komaeda finally speaks. “But I think I can say… that if there's anyone I’d want to show even just the semblance of remarkableness from me, it’d be you too, Makoto-kun.”

 

“You're already remarkable, you know. You don’t even have to try.”

 

“Haha, I…” Komaeda fumbles with his own hands, the box of mochi placed beside him temporarily forgotten. “…I still don’t understand why anyone would think that. But I’ll have to learn how to accept that there really are people who believe that, right?”

 

“Is there anything wrong, Nagito-kun?” Naegi runs his thumb on the back of Komaeda’s hand. “But yes, of course you should learn to accept it. It’s the truth. You're really amazing.”

 

“Sorry for worrying you.” Komaeda forces a chuckle. “I'm just trying to work on accepting things that I find hard to believe... It’s so much more difficult than I expected! If I were to use one word to summarize what I feel, it would probably be ‘dissonance’. I didn’t know that it’d feel this uncomfortable…”

 

“Nagito-kun, is this still about what you told me earlier today? Your concerns regarding Hinata-kun?”

 

“Yes... I'm sorry, you did tell me that it worries you that I'm thinking so much about this, but being alone earlier must have given me so much time to think of things. I apologize if you don’t want to talk about this, Makoto-kun. We can talk about something else if you'd prefer that.”

 

“No, it’s okay, I don’t mind.” Naegi smiles a bit to seem reassuring. “So what conclusion did you reach? Will you accept that Hinata-kun had feelings for you?”

 

Komaeda nods, biting his lower lip. “It still feels strange, but to be honest… this decision feels better compared to earlier when I was saying no to the idea without even thinking properly about it…”

 

“So what are you going to do about it?”

 

 “Well… Nothing, really. I just thought that if it’s something real and it’s right in front of me, it wouldn’t be good if I continue rejecting it, right…?”

 

“Okay.” Naegi leans closer against him. “You're really not going to do anything, right?”

 

“Of course not…”

 

Naegi smiles, placing a hand on Komaeda’s cheek. “Do you promise?”

 

“I promise, Makoto-kun.” Komaeda places a hand on Naegi’s. “You have nothing to worry about.”

 

“I know.” Naegi chuckles as he slowly places a kiss on Komaeda’s forehead. “You're the best, Nagito-kun. I'm so lucky to have you.”

 

“I'm actually the lucky one to have you…” Komaeda says, but he looks happy anyway. “I'm the Super High School Level Good Luck, after all, haha!”

 

“Right, you are.” Naegi chuckles again. “But you know, even if you're the one whose talent is luck between us, I still can’t stop myself from feeling lucky anyway that you're with me.”

 

Despite the dim light of the lamppost a good meter away from them, Naegi could still see that Komaeda blushed a bit. “You're too kind, Naegi-kun…”

 

“Anyway,” Naegi pulls away a bit, going back to his position earlier. “Is your conclusion final? What did you think about for you to reach this thought?”

 

“Well… To be honest, I just thought more hardly about the things Hinata-kun’s mother said… and also the things that Hinata-kun himself has said to me back then. I just thought that maybe… just maybe… it isn’t so impossible, after all.”

 

“Well, I don’t mean to upset you, but…” Naegi bites his lower lip. “Why is this such a big deal to you? I mean, I understand that you seem to just want to get closer to the truth, but this thing has preoccupied your mind the whole day, didn’t it? Is it really so important to you, Nagito-kun?”

 

“I'm sorry, please don’t think anything of it… To be honest, I myself don’t know why I couldn’t bring it out of my mind. I just feel like it will be important to know about this somehow…”

 

“Haha, well, I hope it’s not because you enjoy the thought that someone else is pining for you.”

 

“…Did it seem that way? I assure you, it wasn’t that—”

 

“Then maybe you should stop thinking about it, Nagito-kun.” Naegi lets out a chuckle as he looks up to the sky. Almost no stars were visible tonight. The night clouds were so dark, almost as if it would rain anytime soon. It’s giving him the impression that the sky is nothing but an empty black hole that could suck and end the whole world in a glimpse. “Since you said numerous times that it won’t affect anything anyway, there's just no point thinking so much about it, let alone using a whole day pondering about it. Don’t you agree?”

 

“…Yeah. I'm sorry.” The previous happiness Komaeda had in his face was completely gone, leaving not even a small trace of its presence. “…I upset you again, didn’t I?”

 

“It’s okay. It doesn’t matter.” Naegi ruffles his hair and kisses his cheek again. “I was just a little jealous. Like always. Nothing new.”

 

“H-Haha, it seems that these days, I couldn’t do anything but upset you and do something wrong.” Komaeda looks up, and his eyes looked like they did that day—that day when he waited for Naegi outside his classroom after sending numerous texts that all went ignored. “Haha… ha, you deserve so much better, I don’t understand why you like me, I don’t understand why Hinata-kun would like me, I swear I'm not thinking of this because I like the idea that people are fond of me—I mean, of course I'm happy and flattered that there are people who think that I'm actually worth something—but the reason why I'm thinking so much about it is because it just feels so strange, haha, I honestly couldn’t grasp why anyone would tolerate me, much less like me—I'm so sorry, I keep on upsetting you, you're the nicest person that I know, yet I still manage to upset you because that’s just how despair-inducingly—”

 

“Nagito-kun,” Naegi interrupts when he realizes that he's been doing nothing but watching for too long. He holds both of Komaeda’s hands, leaning his forehead on Komaeda’s. “Please calm down… Take deep breaths, and don’t think of anything for a while.”

 

“…Haha, I'm really pathetic, aren’t I?”

 

“Shhh.” Naegi tightens his hold on Komaeda’s hands. “No, you're not.”

 

“Makoto-kun… Do you finally hate me?”

 

“I could never.” Naegi pulls away and shakes his head. “Don’t even think about that. It will never happen.”

 

“I mean, I’d understand—”

 

“Shhh.” Naegi rubs his thumbs on the back of Komaeda’s hands. “Don’t. I'm here with you, okay? Don’t say anything for a while. Only if it’s alright… please just focus on my touch on you for now… and try to listen to what I have to say.”

 

Naegi was thinking just a few minutes ago that he was in a good mood because of the whole Kamukura Izuru business, and he can’t believe how fast that sensation wore off and that he's now feeling slightly annoyed again.

 

It was true, what Kamukura Izuru said.

 

His temperament really is choleric.

 

Though, if he were to evaluate himself, he thinks it would be more accurate to say that he's a blend of choleric and melancholic.

 

Komaeda nods. “Okay… I'm so sorry.”

 

“Don’t be. I love you, Nagito-kun. You know that, right? I already told you… On that day—that day that I started to deem as special to me—when I gave you that,” Naegi gently places his hand on Komaeda’s necklace. “I made it clear to you that I wanted you in my life. I was sure then when I said that… and I'll still be sure now if I say it again. I want you to be with me forever.”

 

“Ah…” Komaeda bites his lower lip. “I'm sorry. I guess I needed the reminder. It’s not that I didn’t believe your certainty. It’s just that the time prior to the Day of Hope until the day itself, I had my things together… well, compared to right now, at least. Recently, all I’ve been doing is making you feel bad…”

 

“That’s not true. You know, in all honesty, you're the person whose presence I enjoy the most.” Naegi says, showing him a small smile. This statement is actually true—the fact that Komaeda respects him and does what he wants makes his presence easier to tolerate compared to everyone else’s. “And I did tell you that you're important to me a lot of times already, right? Even if you did upset me—which you didn’t, by the way—your importance to me still won’t change. Because I value you. Do you believe me, Nagito-kun?”

 

“Of course I do.” Komaeda returns the small smile, though his worry still left hints on his face. “I’ll always do.”

 

“I'm happy to know that.”

 

“A-Anyway,” Komaeda turns around, finally remembering the box of mochi. He takes the box and places it on his lap as he goes back to facing Naegi. “Haha, sorry! I bought this for you, yet I distracted us both because I found the need to whine again… What mochi do you want to start with this time, Naegi-kun?”

 

“I don’t really have a specific preference.” Naegi smiles again. Looks like they're finally out of that conversation. “Maybe I’ll try daifuku? It means ‘great luck’, after all… It has always reminded me of you, no matter what kind of daifuku it is.”

 

“Oh.” Komaeda lightly blushes as he hands the daifuku to Naegi. “Then maybe the daifuku that can represent me is the yomogi daifuku. It’s made with kusamochi, after all, and apparently, the color of kusamochi looks like the color of my eyes.”

 

“Right.” Naegi chuckles after he eats the mochi. “Hinata-kun told you that, didn’t he?”

 

“Well, yes…” Komaeda’s smile then almost looked apologetic. He must have been trying not to talk about Hinata because of Naegi’s reaction earlier. Naegi wonders—if only Komaeda knew about Hinata’s feelings right from the start, would he have tried to avoid talking about Naegi in front of him too? “How did you know?”

 

“You did mention to me back then that his favorite mochi is kusamochi, so I thought it would make sense.” Naegi takes one of the yomogi daifuku from the box. “Did he say that he liked your eyes then?”

 

“Well, not really… He only said he liked the color of my eyes, but not directly too… It was just a passing comment, we didn’t really dwell on it. A-Anyway,” Komaeda looked amusing to watch. “What do you want to try next, Makoto-kun?”

 

“I like your eyes.” Naegi says after he eats the yomogi daifuku he just took, looking at the box again to see what other choices he has. “Did I ever tell you that?”

 

“No, right now is the first time, but…” Komaeda smiles a bit. “I'm really flattered. Thank you.”

 

“I like your hair too.”

 

“Haha, yeah… You said it reminds you of the clouds.”

 

“Your skin.” Naegi takes another yomogi daifuku. Too bad there's only two of each flavor. “I like touching it. It’s soft.”

 

Naegi briefly wonders if Komaeda’s blushing will end up being perpetual if this continues. “Thank you… Yours is soft too.”

 

“I like your hands as well.” The truth is Naegi doesn’t really like mochi. Not like he hates them per se, but they’ve always been nothing remarkable for him. He doesn’t understand why it’s so popular. Practically anywhere he goes there are people selling mochi. “And how gentle you are when you touch me.”

 

“Haha, you really should stop, Makoto-kun!” Komaeda lets out an embarrassed giggle. “It makes me so happy, but I think my heart is going to explode because of too much happiness!”

 

If only people’s hearts really could explode because of receiving too many compliments.

 

“But Nagito-kun, I wanted to tell you exactly what you make me feel. Even if I'm kind of embarrassed too… That overwhelming happiness you felt must be like what I feel too whenever I look at you.”

 

“Thank you… You make me so happy, to be honest, I find myself getting so distracted from a lot of things when I'm with you…” Komaeda pauses for a while, then he gets alarmed when he realizes what he said. “I meant that in a good way, of course! When I'm with you, I feel like I have nothing to worry about.”

 

“Like how I feel everything is achievable when you're with me?” Naegi chuckles as he eats another mochi. He doesn’t even know what flavor anymore, he just grabs what he first touches. “I'm flattered I make you feel that way.”

 

“I think it’s just normal to feel this way regarding you, Makoto-kun.” Komaeda smiles. “Your presence is just so soothing, and you're so trustworthy… I'm sure all your friends will agree that that’s what you make them feel too.”

 

“That’s good to hear. It’s the least I could do for all of you for treating me so well.” Naegi laughs. “I mean, being the Super High School Level Hope and all… I want everyone to feel like they can count on me when they need it. Especially you, Nagito-kun.”

 

“You're doing just fine, Makoto-kun. You don’t have to try so hard. I know it comes naturally to you!” Komaeda looked proud as he spoke. “I mean, it’s your talent, after all. Hope’s Peak Academy itself chose you! It means you're capable of great things even if you don’t try!”

 

“You really think that?”

 

“Of course! There's no reason not to, you know.”

 

“I appreciate your belief in me.”

 

“Yes, so I'm positive that you get along with everyone…” Komaeda must have remembered something because he suddenly looked worried again. “That’s why I'm… kind of worried because I was thinking to myself earlier… I wanted to discuss something with you, if it’s okay, Makoto-kun.”

 

So Komaeda still wanted to talk about something else. Naegi thought he was already done. Maybe he should save eating the mochi for later. “You don’t have to ask permission. You can just start talking about whatever you like whenever you want, you know.”

 

“Alright, thank you… Well, see, I was just wondering if it’s possible—I know it sounds ridiculous, and I shouldn’t open up things that I'm not even sure about, but I thought you might be able to help me with this—that someone else might have planned for you and Hinata-kun to have a fight.” Komaeda bites his lower lip. “I mean, I think it could make sense. Someone else might have told Hinata-kun that you were trying to give him that pen he was talking about. What do you think?”

 

“Well, of course, my opinion is only as valid as yours… I don’t exactly have proof to prove or disprove that hypothesis. But maybe I can say that it isn’t exactly impossible.” Naegi lightly rubs his own chin as he stares at the ground. It would be entertaining if Komaeda pursues this line of thinking. “But then again, I don’t know who can possibly do something like that… and why.”

 

“Yeah, me too.” Komaeda sighs. “When I was thinking, I thought it could possibly be someone who's maybe envious of you… I mean, I know you're kind to everyone. If there's anyone who’d be upset at you, the only reasonable cause is if they were envious.”

 

“Well, to be honest, I don’t see any reason why anyone would be envious of me.” Naegi bites his lower lip. “I mean, even if it’s true that I shine in something I do well, doesn’t everyone here? Everyone has their own talent. I find it difficult to think that there might be someone who's feeling that way… and for me at that.”

 

“There are so many things that can make someone envy you, you know. It goes along being as amazing as you. I know, I think Super High School Levels shouldn’t envy each other too as all of you are amazing in your own ways, but you might have other things that they don’t that isn’t entirely about talents.” Komaeda replies. “Like, maybe… you really have a lot of friends, Makoto-kun. There are people who find it difficult to make friends with other people. Others even find mere interaction not easy. It can be about that, right?”

 

“Well, as I said, it’s not impossible… but I'm not really sure. My only actual close friends are my classmates. Your classmates and other people from other classes are, at best, my acquaintances. The only other close person outside my class is you, and that’s because we’re in a relationship.” Naegi lets out a sheepish chuckle. “It doesn’t seem like it at first glance, but all of us are in our class are actually close to each other. It’s just not obvious because we all express it differently. So I don’t think any of them would be envious of what I have because they all have it too. Unless, of course, it’s a person jealous that I have you.”

 

“Haha, that’s just impossible now!”

 

Naegi smiles. “But then again, you thought it was impossible for Hinata-kun to like you too, right?”

 

“…Well, yes.”

 

“Would it be impossible to entertain the idea that this really was done by someone jealous of us and that person was Hinata-kun?” Naegi asks, furrowing his eyebrows. “I mean, of course I don’t like this idea too—as I said, he's an important friend to me—but it’s just… well, it’s not too farfetched, right? Neither of us even saw that pen that he was talking about.”

 

“Well, right, but… I’d like to think that Hinata-kun wouldn’t lie.”

 

So he came up with an option where both he and Naegi aren’t lying. His desire to keep pure his belief in the both of them is actually pretty admirable. “But Nagito-kun… It’s not too good to come up with a solution with an inflexible assumption already in hand, is it? You know what that certain book says—if the fact will not fit the theory, let the theory go.”

 

“Haha, but… there's another quote that goes like ‘If the facts don’t fit the theory, change the facts’, right?”

 

Of course Naegi knew about that. He just didn’t think Komaeda would quote it to contradict what he said. “Yes, you're right, Nagito-kun. I do know that quote too. But it’s not exactly applicable in a situation like this, is it? I mean, that quote would work more on scientific experiments… You can’t exactly change the facts here.”

 

“Right… I'm sorry. I must have sounded so stupid.”

 

“It’s alright.” Naegi smiles. “You were just trying your best to look at every angle. It’s okay. There's nothing wrong with that.”

 

“Thank you for understanding, Makoto-kun.”

 

“Anyway, is it really so unthinkable that he’d do something like that? I mean, we did establish now that he likes you… If you look at the situation with that in mind, it would just make sense that he’d want you for himself, right?” Naegi bites his lower lip. “On the surface, it would seem like someone was trying to estrange him from us, but isn’t that because he was trying to not get suspected? He must have put his faith in you… After all, being a good friend, you'd never give up on him. There's just no way… and he probably knew that.”

 

“I don’t know… I know it’s not good to just rely on instinct in a situation like this, but it’s not like we have enough evidence to actually judge accurately now. It’s just that… I really don’t think he’d do something like that. Even until our last conversation when I… was firmly not talking to him, he still held on to his claim. If his goal was to, as you put it, have me… I don’t understand why he won’t do anything differently in a situation where I'm already ignoring him.”

 

“Maybe because he knew that you'd think that way, Nagito-kun.” Naegi frowns. “I mean, you're right. His doing something like that just made him look even more honest. But maybe you're forgetting about his confusing accusations. You do know that he went from insisting that you gave me a pen to saying that you didn’t, right? Even if, let’s say, your hypothesis that there was someone who aims to confuse us all in this situation is right… it doesn’t make sense that he just changed his claim halfway. How will you explain that behavior, Nagito-kun?”

 

“Right, that part confuses me too, of course… but when I was thinking to myself, I thought it was because Hinata-kun must have realized while arguing with you that it must have been wrong that I gave you a pen. We both know that that’s true, so he must have been on the right track then… We also both know what happened after that.” Komaeda lets out a sigh. “I'm not blaming you, of course. I understand. You panicked, as you told me. I'm just saying this as a possible explanation as to why he did what he did…”

 

“I know you're not trying to blame me, but you're really starting to make me think that this is my fault, haha.” Naegi bites his lower lip. “I don’t know what I should have done, Nagito-kun. I'm so sorry. When I did my best to tell him that you really didn’t give me any pen, that I seriously don’t know anything about any pen at all, he didn’t believe me. No matter what I say, he didn’t believe me. So when I thought I should just agree to get things over with—it was getting late, after all—he suddenly started to say you didn’t. I'm sorry. Should I really have stood my ground?”

 

“No, no, I'm sorry, it’s not your fault at all! It’s not my intention for you to feel that way. You didn’t do anything wrong.” Komaeda places his hand on Naegi’s. The guilt on Komaeda’s face was too evident Naegi almost laughed. “It’s okay.”

 

“And I was so scared because you must have felt suspicious of me… I mean, I told you to lie for me, after all. I’d feel suspicious of me too if I were in your situation. But I promise I honestly didn’t know what to do. I'm really sorry.”

 

“It’s okay.” Komaeda runs his thumb on the back of Naegi’s hand, probably to mirror what Naegi does when he comforts Komaeda too. How terribly sweet. “I wasn’t suspicious of you. I already told you—the worst that I felt was confusion, but that’s it, Makoto-kun. I don’t know if the words I'm saying are helping, but… I just don’t want you to be worried anymore…”

 

“The fact that you have such deep trust in me makes me feel better already.” Naegi lets out a small smile as he speaks. “Thank you.”

 

“Don’t thank me…” Komaeda smiles back, a dust of pink on his cheeks. “I don’t deserve it. I mean, I'm only doing what I should rightfully do for you.”

 

“Still, thank you, Nagito-kun.” Naegi says again before putting on a slightly more serious expression. “Anyway, going back to your hypothesis then… As you said, both of us have no proof, but if I were to think who could possibly do something like that, I’d say that it’s Hinata-kun. It hurts me to say this too as I still really care about him, but I just can’t think of anyone else…”

 

Komaeda nods. He looked forlorn somehow, and Naegi knows that what he said isn’t what Komaeda wants to hear at this moment. Of course—his talent included knowing what the other person wants to hear and what would reassure them the most, and Naegi’s making a conscious effort to make the wrong choice.

 

Sometimes, being wrong can be entertaining.

 

“Thank you for addressing my concerns, Makoto-kun.” Komaeda smiles in a way that makes it seem forced. “If I learn something new, I’ll come and discuss with you again. Is that okay?”

 

“Of course.” Naegi nods as he smiles back. “You can do that anytime, okay?”

 

“Thank you so much…”

 

“Anyway, do you still have things you want to talk about?” Naegi reaches out to get a mochi again now that Komaeda’s concern seem to be reaching a halt. “If there's something worrying you, it’s okay to tell.”

 

“No, I think I'm okay now.” Komaeda nods, his smile starting to look a little more genuine. “I'm kind of embarrassed because I seem to have just whined to you tonight. Does Naegi-kun want to talk about something else? Right, I did ask earlier—you met someone today, right? If you want to, you can tell me more about what happened.”

 

In truth, Naegi really wants to go home already.

 

“Haha, there isn’t really much to say.” Naegi hums. “Well, I think I already told you that the person I met and I were pretty similar. I just really hope we get along. I think it would be nice if we do.”

 

“If it’s Makoto-kun, then I'm sure he’d get along with anyone he wants to get along with!” Komaeda nods. Naegi found it funny because it almost seemed like Komaeda was more excited about this compared to him. “And since you said that you were similar, then I'm sure that he must be a nice person. The both of you will be great friends to each other. I just know it.”

 

“Haha, you really think so, Nagito-kun?” Naegi smiles. “That means a lot. I want to trust your judgment. I mean, I really, really want to be friends with that person.”

 

“You should trust yourself and your talent more, you know.” Komaeda smiles back. “You're capable of amazing things… You're the Super High School Level Hope.”

 

“You're right.” When Naegi smiles again that time, it must have been genuine. “I am the Super High School Level Hope.”

 

\--

 

“Good meowning, Naegi-kun-kyun-chan-chi-chama-pon-tan-nyan-chin-tama!” Enoshima practically jumps to Naegi’s face the next day, grinning at him so widely he briefly contemplated turning around to leave finally without going to school that day. Instead, of course, he chooses to smile like he wasn’t annoyed first thing in the morning.

 

“Good morning, Enoshima-san. You seem really happy about something today.” Naegi looks around the classroom to see who else is inside just in case he gets too irritated to stick with Enoshima. There was Ikusaba—of course, she usually, if not always, goes to school at the same time with Enoshima—Ishimaru, Maizono, Oowada, and Fujisaki. If Naegi does get too annoyed, at least he seems to have a lot of options.

 

He smiles at Ikusaba when they make eye contact, and when she smiles back, she looked a little embarrassed and happy even if it also looked a bit stiff. Right, he has things to talk about with Ikusaba. He should probably lose Enoshima fast.

 

“Yeah, yeah, I'm in a super duper good mood! Even if, you know, there's this very, very scary rumor circulating! Have you heard about it, Naegi-kun-kyun-chan-chi-chama-pon-tan-nyan-chin-tama?”

 

“A rumor?” Naegi furrows his eyebrows. “I don’t think so. Which rumor do you mean?”

 

“Well, well, there's a rumor that five researchers of Hope’s Peak Academy were just found dead this morning! I heard their corpses were, like, ugly and shit! Like, I heard there was this guy who was like bathing in the Pacific Ocean, except he was in a puddle of blood instead!”

 

Enoshima’s grin was so big.

 

“Are you serious, Enoshima-san? That’s quite worrying, you know. You shouldn’t be saying that so casually.”

 

“Right, I should frown and mourn and stuff.” Enoshima actually does frown, putting her two hands together in front of her chest as she sighs. “It was so, so despair-inducingly sad… I heard one lady was missing her hands and died due to blood loss…”

 

“That’s horrible. Do they have any leads regarding the culprit?”

 

Enoshima sighs. “That’s so despair-inducing… These are all just rumors, you know…? Naegi-kun-kyun-chan-chi-chama-pon-tan-nyan-chin-tama, you shouldn’t believe everything that you're told…”

 

“I know, but this is quite worrying, don’t you think, Enoshima-san? I mean, rumors are not entirely baseless. There has to be something that caused it. No matter how far away the rumor is from the truth, it has to be related somehow.”

 

“Hahaha, fuck yeah!” Enoshima roughly ruffles his hair. Naegi resists the urge to slice off her hands like what she did to that lady. “Well, damn, I heard that some guy fucking wrecked those little shits! But y’know, as I said, they're fucking rumors! Motherfucking rumors! Nothing but that! So don’t worry your cute-as-fuck face, ‘kay, ‘kay?”

 

“Alright.” Naegi smiles. “Maybe you should be careful, Enoshima-san. There really are a lot of sick people like that walking around.”

 

“Right.” Enoshima returns his smile. “You should be careful too, Naegi-kun.”

 

\--

 

“Ikusaba-san, did Enoshima-san already tell you about what happened last night?” It was a good thing that Ikusaba was just seated in front of Naegi. It makes talking quite easier unlike with Enoshima who usually transfers beside him only to get reprimanded by Ishimaru later on. But then again, it’s still pretty early and there's still more than half an hour before the first class begins, so it’d be okay even if Ikusaba sits beside him at the moment.

 

Ikusaba nods.

 

Naegi smiles.

 

“I need you, Ikusaba-san.” He says quite simply. “I think you're the only one who can help me with this.”

 

Ikusaba manages to maintain her usually calm and collected self as she nods again, but Naegi still managed to detect the emotion on her face when he says that. Anticipation? Naegi wonders if that is how he looked to Kamukura Izuru too.

 

And there was a hint of worry. For possibly disappointing Naegi, maybe?

 

“I want you to keep an eye on Nagito-kun—or Komaeda-kun, if you know him better by that name. Just like how you did last night.” Naegi bites his lower lip. “It’s because I don’t want him to meet our new friend just yet. This is going to be difficult—I mean, I'm sure you already heard of the things that that person is capable of doing—but I believe in you, Ikusaba-san. Even if I'm with Komaeda-kun, I need you to still keep watch from a place that will give you a greater scope… Is that alright?”

 

“I can promise that I will do everything I can… I don’t want to disappoint you or Junko-chan in any kind of situation.”

 

“I'm sure your best will be enough.” Naegi smiles. “Please remember that I don’t want you to get hurt, so if ever the two of you will have to fight, you don’t have to win. You just have to keep Komaeda-kun away from wherever he is. I know it’s more than likely that he will catch on that something is up right away, but if we all do our best, I know we can do it. And please remember, Ikusaba-san, that if you need assistance, it’s okay to tell our classmates. Not that I doubt your abilities, but that person really just can’t be taken lightly… It’s better to be safe in this situation, I think.”

 

“Understood. I’ll keep you updated all the time.”

 

“Thank you so much.” Naegi replies. “I knew I could count on you.”

 

\--

 

Naegi decides to stay behind in the classroom that afternoon.

 

“We haven’t given you any way to contact us, but anyway, that’s because I know we’ll be too easy to be found by anyone even if it’s not someone as great as you.” Naegi says when he feels someone enter the room, letting out a chuckle. “It’s you, isn’t it? If it turns out to be someone else, I’ll look so much like a weirdo talking to myself here, haha. Well, then… Does this mean you do want to be friends?”

 

Naegi turns around, and he smiles.


End file.
